1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to carpentry tools and, more specifically, to an improved tape measure apparatus which can be used as a marking gauge and/or compass.
2. General Background of the Invention
Standard tape measures include a length of tape wound on a spool with a spring return mechanism so that after the tape is taken out of a housing, the spring return mechanism automatically retracts the tape into the housing. A locking mechanism, typically a sliding button, locks the tape for the purpose of reading the length of the deployed tape.
Numerous tape measures have been provided in prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,624,120 to Mills; U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,486 to Drechsler; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,426 to Hull are illustrative of the prior art and incorporated herein by reference to show the conventional construction of tape measures. While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described. Tape measures are well adapted for measuring distances but their utility is usually restricted to this single function.
Many instances arise where workpieces must be scribed at uniform distances or have arcs or circles marked thereupon. In these instances tools such as marking gauges and compasses are required in addition to standard tape measures.
While certain novel features of the invention shown and described below are pointed out in the annexed claims, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details specified, since a person of ordinary skill in the relevant art will understand that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. No feature of the invention is critical or essential unless it is expressly stated as being “critical” or “essential.”